


A Rose With No Thorns

by Emme2589



Series: Just Call And I'll Be There [11]
Category: Henry Stickmin Series (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, Childhood Trauma, Drama, Eye Trauma, Fluff, Friendship, Henry is Bisexual, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Torture, Interrogation, M/M, Magic, Past Child Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Psychological Trauma, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Selectively Mute Henry Stickmin, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Hatred, Sign Language, Special BROvert Ops Ending | SBO (Henry Stickmin), Swearing, everyone is in pain, special brovert ops would be the perfect ending if ellie was in it and i stand by that, though there are elements from convict allies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:02:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27911203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emme2589/pseuds/Emme2589
Summary: Henry reunites with an old friend, and an old enemy. Old memories resurface. He wishes he could have just started over.But he has people who care about him, and they're not about to let him suffer alone.
Relationships: Charles Calvin/Henry Stickmin
Series: Just Call And I'll Be There [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2011435
Comments: 33
Kudos: 97





	1. Chapter 1

Henry rose to the surface in the elevator, his nerves on fire because of the riot. He knew he'd been pardoned, but he didn't know about the other convicts in the complex. He didn't know how safe he was, and the only thing he could think about was how Charles must be worried about him. Or, maybe he wasn't worried at all. Did he care? Henry felt like crap after that thought.

"Dude, chill, we're almost outta here."

Oh yeah, he wasn't alone in the elevator. Beside him, watching him pace, was his convict ally, Ellie Rose. She explained why she was in the complex, something about blowing the whistle on corruption in the FBI, and he had seen what she could do, so he trusted that he could help her without worrying about being backstabbed, at least until they got out.

"Sorry." Henry hit both sides of his head with his fists, "I just can't stop thinking about this guy that I maybe sort of have the biggest crush on, and I'm scared he isn't thinking about me or the fact that I'm missing or..."

He trailed off. Why was he telling her this? They'd only just met today.

"Oh." Ellie laughed, "How long have you known this guy?"

"Um..." well, dumping his problems on somebody he might not ever see again wouldn't be the _dumbest_ thing he'd ever done, "About three months, I think."

"Good for you, Henry." she stuffed her hands in her pockets, "You should tell him once we get out?"

"Huh? Oh, no no no no." Henry's heart was screaming at the very idea, "I only just realized I like him like that! I can't...what if he..."

God, when did it happen? Charles was his friend, no doubt. His best friend, even. When did those compliments on his skills start making his palms sweaty? When did Charles' beaming smile start making his eyes linger on him for too long? When had his attempts at hugging and hand-holding stopped being uncomfortable and started feeling really nice?

Jesus, this wasn't supposed to happen! Henry wasn't supposed to get bitten by the love bug! He couldn't just give his heart away like that!

"Henry." Ellie touched his shoulder, "Just calm down for a second."

His gaze snapped up to her, "I can't tell him. He's a high-ranking government pilot, and I'm just a..."

A what? An ex-criminal? A fraud? A traumatized shell of a man still trapped in worst-case scenarios and the gnawing ache of hunger?

"You told me you were pardoned."

"I was, but..." Henry rubbed his arms, his voice lowering to a murmur, _"That doesn't mean I'm a good person."_

She sighed, "Look, Henry. For all you know, he's thinking the same thing, that you're cool and he's just whatever. Wouldn't you rather tell him just so you won't be left wondering?"

Henry considered her words as the elevator doors opened up, and they ran out into the cold.

The riot was still going on, with guards and convicts alike clashing with whatever they could get their hands on. Henry made a break for it, pulling his hoodie tighter around himself to ward off the harsh cold of the storm.

"Henry!"

He skid to a halt, slipping on the ice as he turned around. Grigori had his hands around Ellie's wrists, and she was fighting frantically against his grip.

"Help!"

Grigori yanked back on her with impressive strength, "Back to your cell, inmate."

Henry pat himself down for whatever he could use to diffuse this situation. People thought that the infamous Henry Stickmin must have incredible powers to be able to overturn his rotten luck, as he seemed to be able to do everything under the sun. Surely, powers like that must be debilitating, a curse on his psyche, but in reality, his powers were far more simple than that.

If he was in a bind, he would always have the exact item he needed in his pocket.

Henry searched his pockets, knowing that if he needed an item to help Ellie, he would have one on him, but he didn't. Nothing he felt safe using, anyway. He made eye contact with her, and her panic began to grow as Grigori continued to drag her away.

If he didn't have an item, then he didn't need one. Thinking fast, he made a face at Grigori, hoping to slow him down at least a little bit.

Grigori lifted an eyebrow, "What, do you think that will upset me? Oh, very matu-!"

A truck hit him as it flew past, and Ellie was free.

"Thanks...I guess?" she joined him in the courtyard, "Now let's get outta here!"

They bolted for the motorcycle nearby, but before Henry had reached it, a searing pain shot up his leg and he collapsed in the snow. A scream tore through his throat.

"Henry!?" Ellie knelt by his side, "Oh my god!"

His pant leg was soaked in blood. He'd stepped into a bear trap.

The guards were gaining the upper hand in the fight, and Henry looked behind him, seeing the approaching reinforcements and realizing that he was royally screwed.

"Ellie, go!" he pushed her away, "Don't worry about me, just go!"

"I'm not leaving you, Henry!" Ellie braced against the bear trap with her foot, but she couldn't pry it open.

"Ellie! I want at least one of us to make it out!" Henry shoved her, "Do you hear me!? If you stay to help me, we'll both be recaptured! _Get out of here! **GO!!!"**_

Ellie stumbled as he shoved her harder, and she broke into a sprint as the guards advanced on Henry. They pried him out of the trap and guided him back into the complex. He couldn't even attempt escape now. There were too many guards. They had to practically carry him as he limped on his injured leg. Even if he had an opening, he couldn't do anything beyond weakly squirming.

He only hoped that Ellie had made it out okay, and that she wouldn't come back.

***

"Rise and shine!"

Henry groaned as the blanket was ripped off of him, and he rolled over to bury his face in the pillow, _"Five more minutes?"_

"Sorry, Hen. Not today." Charles rolled him back over, "There's a new recruit today. A special one. The general says he wants her on our team."

"Fine. I'll get up if you kiss me."

"Fine. Come and get it."

 _"Uuuggggghhhh..."_ Henry exaggeratingly sat up like it was a monumental task, "You're _killing_ me here."

"Just get up. We need to head out in thirty minutes."

Henry slumped as he sat on the edge of the bed, dressing as slowly as possible just to spite his boyfriend. Once he was done putting his shoes on, he stood up and gave a wide yawn.

"Good hustle." Charles said sarcastically, "Well, I made a promise."

Henry smiled as Charles kissed his lips, "Come on. You love me."

"You're an idiot." Charles pushed him so he fell back onto the bed, "Anyway, I'm heading out to meet the recruit. You coming, or what?"

"Yeah yeah, I'm coming..." Henry followed him out, and Charles locked the door behind them before heading down the stairs.

Henry saw the recruit chatting with the other newbies. She was in standard uniform, but she was easy to spot because of her bright red hair. He paused on the concrete landing before the recruit turned to him and her goofy smile fell.

Henry's heart lurched, "Ellie?"

Her face broke out in a huge grin, "Henry!"

"Ellie!" they ran to each other, and Henry hugged her tight, "Oh my gosh, you're alive! I'm so happy to see you!"

"Right back atcha, big boy!" Ellie stepped back as she laughed, "They told me you were here, but...God, I can hardly believe it! I'm so glad you're safe!"

"Um..." Charles stood beside them, "You two know each other?"

 _"Yeah_ we do!" Ellie said excitedly, "Henry helped me escape from The Wall! Oh, how's your leg? Did it heal okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine." Henry took Charles' hand, "Oh, uh...Ellie, this is Charles. He's the one I said I had a crush on. He's my boyfriend now."

"Oh!" Ellie shook his hand, "Congratulations! I've heard good things about you, mister government pilot! It's nice to finally meet you!"

"Hey! Thanks! Any friend of Henry's is a friend of mine!"

"Oh, wait, before I forget..." Ellie turned back to Henry, "There's actually a reason I'm here, beyond my recruitment. Someone caught up to me when I was making my way back home. She said she knew you, that she had a score to settle."

Henry thought back, but he didn't think he had any enemies that used she/her. None that stuck out, anyway.

Except...

Henry visibly paled, "Wait. What was her name?"

Ellie touched his arm to steady him, "Uh...she called herself, 'Gremlin'."

Henry latched on to Charles' arm, not noticing how hard he was scratching the fabric of his jacket.

"Henry?" Charles lifted his gaze, "You know Gremlin?"

It was a name he hadn't heard in so long. He hoped he would never have to face her again.

"Ah, there you are." General Galeforce climbed the stairs to the landing, "I see you've met our Special Ops."

"Uh, yeah..." Ellie took a step away from Henry, who looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack, "See, uh, you didn't tell me that Henry knew her..."

Galeforce's gaze hit Henry's as Henry leaned further into Charles so he wouldn't immediately be thrown into the pavement.

Before he could ask, though, Henry fell to his knees, _"Please,_ sir! _Please_ don't make me go after her!"

Those who were around to listen were frozen in place. Henry was begging... _not_ to go on a mission?"

"Henry..." Galeforce knelt down to meet his gaze, "You can stay behind if you want, but we were really counting on you to help take 'er down."

"I can't face her, General! Not after what she did to me!" Henry was sobbing now, his hands clasped in front of him, "I can't do it! Please!"

Charles knelt down next, wrapping his arms around Henry in a big hug, "What did she do to you?"

"She...um..." Henry gratefully returned the hug, "God, I don't remember! It's like there's a wall in my memory! That's so annoying!"

"What? Henry, how old were you when this happened?"

"I don't know! It's all a huge blur..." Henry sat back on his heels, a hand on his head, "I was really small. That's right. I used to pull up a chair to the counter because it was higher than eye-level for me. That's how small I was." he took a breath as he closed his eyes, "She had a knife. I know that much. I remember that because it was a really pretty knife. The dull side of the blade had a blue stripe along it, and the handle had pink flower shapes carved into it. She did...something with it, and then I went to tell my parents, but they didn't believe me. God, what did she do!? I feel like it's important!"

"It's okay, Hen. We get the picture." Charles pat his shoulder, "If you like, I can take a different soldier with me to help the recruits."

Henry looked up when the words registered, "What?"

"This is a special mission, but it'll require several people, so the general thought we'd take the red recruits with us."

At Henry's confusion, Galeforce filled in for him, "Gremlin has been elusive for so long because she only reappears in labyrinths that she's rigged with traps, usually one that she has memorized so she can escape from any situation no matter which direction we pursue her from. We call our transfers red recruits because they're not green. Get it?"

"But why go after Gremlin? Can't we just leave her alone?"

"Henry, your story confirms to me that she is not above abusing children, which we already knew, but it's not great to get even more confirmation from even longer ago. One of the few things we know about her is that she's almost forty two years old, meaning when she started her criminal road in earnest, you would have been about seven. An actual child. If we let her get away, more people will get hurt, and more people will become as traumatized as you."

"General, _please_ tell me what Gremlin does to her victims!" Charles was shaking now, probably in trauma-induced empathy.

"I'm afraid we don't know either." Galeforce replied, "We know she uses her knives on her victims, as they always come out with lots of cuts on their bodies, but nobody wants to talk about what exactly happens behind closed doors. There's no evidence of rape, nor is there evidence of any physical injury aside from the cuts. Even the bravest and toughest victims refuse to tell us what she does. It deeply worries me. We need to stop her when the opportunity arises, or else this nightmare will continue forever."

Henry certainly didn't like the sound of that. He didn't trust his voice at the moment, so he signed, "Is there really no other evidence?"

He signed slowly, as the general's knowledge of sign was limited, but he usually understood him fine if given some time, "None. We even check the victims for capsaicin, the thing that makes peppers spicy, but there's never so much as an allergic reaction, even in people with common metal allergies. If nothing actually happens, then why are they so traumatized coming out of that torture?"

"I couldn't tell you, sir. I don't remember anything. It was too long ago."

"Well, we intend to interrogate her after her capture." Galeforce gestured to Ellie, who had been silent this whole time, "Ellie Rose is our most promising red recruit. She's even spoken to Gremlin herself, and I know she'll be a very valuable asset to your team."

"Oh, yeah." Ellie shared a glance with another new recruit, "Henry and I have met before. We were in the same holding cell at The Wall."

Galeforce's eyebrows flew up, "Really?"

"Yeah. It's thanks to Henry that I was able to escape and get back home."

"Well, even better." Galeforce offered a hand to help Henry to his feet, "Now, Henry, you're allowed to refuse any mission for any reason, but we could really use your help on this one. We can't afford to let her get away again. We need to put an end to this once and for all."

Henry stuffed his hands in his pockets. He was still shaking in fear. Why couldn't he remember what Gremlin had done? Was it really so bad? Was he simply too young to _know_ why it was so bad? Did he think nothing of it, or was it so bad that he simply deleted the memory from his brain?

"Henry, it's okay." Charles gave his hand a squeeze, "It's okay if you need to sit this one out. If Gremlin has a personal score to settle with you, then you'll be in a lot of danger. Don't feel bad about being afraid."

Henry wasn't just afraid for himself, though. As much as he hated to admit it, _someone_ had to stop her, and if he could face the Toppats multiple times, then why not Gremlin? Well, he knew why. The leader of the Toppats had never abused children. Henry knew that for a fact, based solely on how happy the Toppat recruits always were before their arrest. More relevant though...the Toppats had never abused _him._

The Toppats were just criminals. This was personal.

With that in mind, Henry took a deep breath before clearing his throat to speak, "No. You're right, General. Gremlin needs to be stopped, and there's no way in hell I'm letting Charles face her without me. Count me in."

"I had a feeling you wouldn't be able to resist." Galeforce said with a smile, "You'll need to leave soon. Ellie's squadron will go with you two, and Liam will take Sam's. I know you won't let me down."

***


	2. Chapter 2

Henry's stomach was churning as Charles' helicopter lifted off the ground, and he found himself pacing around the cargo bay while the recruits made light conversation with each other. All except for Ellie.

"Hey." Ellie took his shoulder, "Henry, I just wanted to apologize for what happened at the complex. I still feel bad that I couldn't help you, and that I never went back for you. I was afraid of getting recaptured, and I have my own family to think about."

"Hey, Ellie, it's okay." Henry smiled patiently at her, "I was _hoping_ you wouldn't come back. I _wanted_ you to get out, and I knew I'd get another chance anyway."

"But...but the punishment..."

"I know." he glanced out the window, "I know, Ellie, but I'm fine now. Honest."

She looked as if she didn't quite believe him, but regardless, she let the issue drop.

"Sooo...about you and Charles..."

Henry blushed, "Oh, don't start with that."

"I gotta know what happened! Come on, spill!"

"Alright alright!" Henry laughed nervously, "Okay, so it turns out, he had a massive crush on me too but didn't realize it for a long time? Uh, see I kinda remembered that he loves blueberry pancakes, so I made a bunch for him and then kinda sorta teased him until he kissed me...?"

Ellie's jaw dropped, "Are you joking?"

Henry buried his face in his hands, _"I wish I was...it was so embarrassing..."_

"Oh my _god!"_ Ellie gently hit him, "Good for you! You sure know how to leave an impression."

Charles called from the cockpit, "Henry, you sure are talkative with our new recruit."

"Oh, I know about his selective mutism." Ellie replied, "My youngest brother is completely mute, so I'm used to it."

"Ah. I see."

Charles parked the helicopter on the roof of a building in New York City, near the world trade center. As Liam parked next to them and the recruits reunited to discuss the plan, Charles wrapped an arm around Henry's shoulders.

"Hey, what did Ellie mean when she asked about your leg?"

Henry wrung his hands together, "Well, the reason I couldn't escape with her was because my leg got stuck in a bear trap."

Charles' voice rose an octave, "Ohmigosh are you okay?"

Henry's heart melted at Charles' concern, "I'm fine now. The medics at the complex patched me up surprisingly well."

"Okay, everyone." Liam lifted his goggles from his face as he addressed the whole group, "Sam's team will surround the building and cover any blind spots the reinforcements might miss. Charles' team will head inside and look for Gremlin. Once we corner her, we need to use any means necessary to apprehend her, even if it means using a taser or baton. Don't kill her if you can help it, though. We need her alive."

Sam Turner, the red recruit at the head of Liam's team, had flat blond hair that framed their face like a hat, with a "they/them" pin on the front of their uniform, "We'll be ready, but she's crafty. Trust me. I've faced many dangerous criminals in the past, and she's crazier than all of them."

"I know. She's like a forest goblin." Ellie agreed, "It's good to work with you again, Sam."

"Feeling's mutual, Ellie." Sam gave her a fist bump, "Anyway, the one I'm most worried about is Henry. What do we do if he freezes up or has a trauma response when nobody can help him?"

Henry swallowed, "To be honest...I don't even know if I'll recognize her. It's been so long that her face is a blur in my mind."

"Oh, trust me. You'll know her when you see her." Sam explained, "She has blonde hair like me, but a bit longer, and these chilling bright green eyes. She wears a torn dirty suit that I think was once green, and she looks like she hasn't had a shower in about three weeks. You'll also frequently find twigs and stuff in her hair. Rumor has it, she literally grew up on her own in the woods."

Henry tried to place the description to his memory of Gremlin, but it was still a blur. All he could remember clearly was how she had towered over him, and the way she had held that knife.

The more he thought about it, the harder it was to remember.

"Henry." Charles took his hand, placing a kiss on his cheek, "If you do end up in a panic response, you need to let us know _immediately._ I'll stay with you to make sure nothing goes wrong, okay? You're gonna be fine."

Henry reached up to touch his cheek where Charles had kissed him before reaching up to hold Charles' face in the palm of his hand. Charles gave him a nod, his eyes reflecting concern and empathy. Leave it to him to completely understand, even if he'd never been through it before.

"Charles...I'm really scared that you'll be her next victim." Henry replied, "We still don't know what she actually does to them, and you don't have the luxury of fuzzy childhood memories to block them out."

"I know, but we take risks every time we go on a mission, right?" Charles held Henry's hand on his cheek as he turned his head to kiss his palm, "It's gonna be okay. We protect each other. We always have, yeah?"

Henry smiled as his chest filled with a bubbly kind of joy, like a bottle of fizzy soda, "Yeah. Special BROvert Ops, huh?"

Charles gave him a mock punch, "Dumping me already? Wow. Harsh."

The group laughed. It was nice to just exist like this for a little while.

_"Soldiers, target's been spotted. Get going."_

Henry flinched at the voice of the general in his ear, "You heard him. Let's go."

The general was right about the labyrinth. If Henry didn't have a digital map downloaded to his phone, he was sure he'd get hopelessly lost. As Charles led the group through the winding hallways, he began to feel something...dangerous, for lack of a better term. Like his gut was telling him to get out.

The feeling hit him hard once they appeared in a huge room, easily as big as a basketball court, and the doors all slammed shut around them.

"Well well well! Isn't this a pleasant surprise!"

_That voice!_ Henry staggered backwards until Charles grabbed his arm and hit him with a stern glare.

_Don't lose focus._

Gremlin landed on the floor, her scuffed combat boots squeaking as she stood up straight. True to Sam's word, she was wearing an old green suit with no tie, slightly open in the front to expose the sports bra she wore underneath. Her hair was matted, the blonde color muddied by dirt so it was closer to light brown than true blonde. Her sleeves were also torn, exposing her wrists.

Sam pointed their gun at her, "Don't move! I'm not afraid to shoot!"

"Oh, you're pretty little things, aren't you?" Gremlin drew a decorative switchblade, almost entirely pink from end to end, "This is so exciting! Government shills are my favorite!"

Henry's skin crawled. That voice was in so many of his nightmares, and he never knew where it came from. He almost wanted to pinch himself just to make sure he wasn't dreaming right now.

"Hm?" Gremlin took a few steps closer, and more recruits drew their guns, including Ellie, but she paid them no mind, "Oh, it's Henry! Henry Stickmin! I can't believe it's really you! Goodness, you're so grown up!"

"Shut the fuck up, you bastard!" Charles shielded Henry with his body, his gun drawn and at the ready, "Fuck you! Stay away from him!"

"Don't be like that, you dumb pilot. I just wanna reconnect. I'm an old family friend of the Stickmins, you see, and Henry was one of the sweetest kids on the block."

"I won't hesitate, bitch!" Ellie's finger hovered over the trigger, "You take one more step, and I'll blow your fucking brains out!"

"No you won't." Gremlin snapped her fingers, and the lights cut out, "Good luck shooting me in the dark."

Charles lit a flare, and the dim glow bathed the room in a fiery red light, "Okay. Where did she go?"

Henry heard a voice right in his ear, _"Don't you know not to run after the monster?"_

A gunshot reverberated through the building as the air was stolen from Henry's lungs. Charles grabbed his hand, but they were torn away from each other.

Sam screamed into their earpiece, "Everyone in position! Gremlin is moving! _Go!"_

Henry hit the ground hard, and he started coughing as his ribcage cried out in pain.

A door opened. Henry reached into his pocket for something, _anything._ Whenever he needed an item, he frequently had more than one on him, but he had a feeling about which ones failed and which succeeded. If an item was destined to fail, he felt something awful in his gut akin to knowing someone was right behind you with a loaded gun to your head, but you haven't fully recognized the danger yet. If an item was the right choice, he felt nothing from it. He even had nightmares about his failures sometimes. It was almost like another version of him had actually tried the other options and knew what would happen because of that.

The door was nearly shut...!

A spoon? Fucking good enough. Henry threw it, and it got wedged between the door and the door frame. A spell ricochet off of it like a stream of water would hit a spoon, and the room exploded open, the door flying off its hinges and hitting a recruit hard enough to give him a concussion. Ouch. Henry would apologize for that later. Right now, he needed to see what was going on.

It looked like Gremlin hadn't even registered that her spell had failed. She was pinning Charles down, but he didn't even appear to be fighting back. No. Charles' face was twisted in agony, like he was caught between a gasp and a scream. What could be causing him so much pain? There wasn't a single injury on him that Henry could see, and nothing he was wearing was even out of place.

Then, Henry saw the circle drawn into the floor. A rune. A type of spell that was cast in writing, smeared with blood from Gremlin's knife. Henry felt the room sway beneath him as he fell back into the cold abyss of his own mind.

It was a rune he recognized.

He remembered blood on the floor, spilling into chalk lines, but he didn't know where the blood was coming from. His vision was knocked out, his ears ringing loud enough to drown out everything else as every cell in his body screamed in pain. Pain that was all-encompassing. He was too hot and too cold. Too tense. It was a sharp pain, an aching pain, a burning pain, a throbbing pain. He thought he had frostbite in all of his fingers, and yet they simultaneously burned like they were on fire, his skin prickling like his body was full of needles that coursed with electricity.

Something clicked in his head, and then it made sense.

Some people had the power to manipulate the signals in nerve cells, specifically those that transmit pain signals and similar types of tactile experiences. Many used this power to dull pain, especially if someone was resistant to traditional painkillers, while many others could simulate sensory experiences usually triggered by taste or smell. Some could even create tactile hallucinations, which would make people feel things that weren't really there, from draping silk to crawling bugs.

Gremlin had this power, except she used it in a far more sinister way.

She could artificially activate every pain signal in your whole body at the same time, literally trapping you in a fate worse than torture in hell itself.

All possible physical pain at the same time.

As soon as Henry snapped out of it, he lunged forward, erasing the edge of the circle with his sleeve, and Gremlin's spell broke as Charles gasped for air.

"Guys!" Ellie tackled Gremlin to the ground, and Henry picked up the knife she'd dropped, still dipped in Charles' blood.

"Charles?" Henry sat him up, "Charles, it's me. You need to breathe, okay?"

Charles' pupils were white as his frantic and hollow gaze swept all around the room. Henry could now see the cuts on his body, no longer than his thumbnail, placed randomly from his forehead to the back of his hand to his knee, literally cut through his jeans just the slightest amount. He realized that Gremlin's powers probably travelled easier through blood, which was common with nerve powers, so getting blood to flow into the rune could maximize her output of pain.

_"Henry?"_ Charles' voice barely made a sound, _"Wh-what happened? Where are we?"_

"We're on a mission, remember?" Henry could hear shouting and gunshots behind him as he took Charles' cheek in one hand, "We need to get Gremlin back to base, right?"

He tried his hardest to remain calm, as Charles was still out of it like he was half-asleep. Henry remembered how that felt. His brain had tried to process so much pain at once that as a defense mechanism, it had completely shut down instead.

Charles stood up on wobbling legs, and Henry held him up while he leaned on the wall for balance, a hand on his forehead.

"Hey. You're okay." Henry soothed, "It was just a spell. You're not really hurt. It's a trick."

Charles didn't seem convinced, but he didn't say anything.

"HEY! STOP!"

Ellie's shout made him look up. Gremlin had fought her way out of Ellie's hold and was charging towards them. Next thing Henry knew, something sticky was sprayed into his face, and he closed his eyes on instinct as his hands came off with some kind of gel on them.

Henry had been pepper sprayed!

Liam tased Gremlin so she was thrown to the ground, and every available recruit manhandled her while she shouted until she was well out of earshot.

"Ha! You think you're so great, Henry!? I bet you thought you were so heroic when in reality, you're no more threatening than a puppy with your pretty face! You've got no bite! At least Ellie Rose here has some funk! She's all thorns! _You're just a rose! A rose with no thorns!"_

Henry was panicking. The burn was setting in, and he didn't know what to do!

"Henry!" Charles took both his hands, "Don't touch your face! We got her, so I'm taking you back!"

Henry couldn't open his eyes. He let Charles lead him back across the road and up the fire escape, the whole time trying to breathe and swallowing air instead as he wetly coughed.

"Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth." Charles set him on the bench before hurrying to the cockpit.

"Charles!" Henry squeezed his hands into fists, remembering not to touch his face but wanting to disobey anyway.

"It's okay. I can pilot." one of the red recruits said, so in a flash, Charles was back at Henry's side.

_"Charles!"_

"I'm here, Hen." Charles took his hands again as he knelt in front of him on the bench, "Hey, Henry, it's okay. I know, it sucks, but once we're back on base, we'll wash that shit out of your eyes."

_"Don't go, Charles."_

"I'm not going anywhere." Charles reached up into overhead storage to grab a paper towel for his hands, "Hey, I know you want to scratch the spray off, but trust me, all it'll do is rub it further in."

_"I'm scared. I can't open my eyes."_

"I know. Just keep 'em closed. We're almost there. Just hold on a little longer." Charles touched his headset, "Hey! We have a pepper sprayed soldier! Get the hose and spray bottles ready!"

When the plane touched down, Charles placed a hand on Henry's back and held his hand in the other to lead him from the helicopter, with Ellie on his other side. The burn was so bad by now that he felt like his eyes had literally caught fire and were burning to ashes. He squeezed Charles' and Ellie's hands hard to stop him from raking his nails up and down his face.

"Right here, there's a bucket." Charles set his hand on the tall barrel of plastic, "Lean over it and turn your head to the side."

Henry obeyed, and he felt a cold stream of water washing over his face. Breathing was a little easier by now, but the pain wasn't going away.

"There." Charles gently pulled him upright, "They've got spray bottles full of milk. Just a heads-up."

Henry felt the spray. It cut through the heat a little better than the water had, but not by much. The pepper spray was gone, but the burn lingered, and it hurt so badly.

The water and milk dripped past his lips, which were also feeling the effects of the pepper spray, _"I still can't open my eyes."_

"Hey, you will. It won't last longer than thirty minutes, I swear." Charles leaned into his shoulder, "Do you need more water? More milk?"

_"Um...water, please."_

It took another minute or so before Henry was able to pry his eyes open. He was still on the helipad, with the hose coming from a wall for the specific purpose of eye-washing. He realized his nose had been running this whole time as he wiped the milk from his face.

_"Oh jeez, I'm so sorry, can I get a tissue?"_

"Don't apologize!" one of the soldiers laughed as she held up a tissue box, and Henry took a tissue to blow his nose, "Trust me. You're fine."

Henry never thought he'd stop taking _oxygen_ for granted. He took breath after breath of sweet, precious air, hiccuping up the air in his stomach that he'd swallowed as his throat hurt from heartburn. He sharply hit his chest with one fist until he burped, coughing as bile hit the top of his windpipe.

"God, I'm sorry. I feel like such a mess right now."

"Hey! You're good!" Ellie gave his shoulder a squeeze, "You should've seen _me_ when I got pepper sprayed! I coughed up mucus all over the floor because it kept trying to drip into my lungs!"

Henry blinked as water and milk clung to his eyelashes, "You've been pepper sprayed...?"

"Yup. Had to to join the FBI."

"All green recruits entering law enforcement need to go through this." Charles gently guided Henry's hands away from his face, "Hey, I know the spray is mostly gone, but don't rub your face. It'll make it worse."

Henry closed his eyes, "More milk, please?"

He focused on the feeling of the cold liquid counteracting the burn. He blinked rapidly to spread the milk over his eyes. It hurt a little, but it was _nothing_ compared to the pepper spray.

His eyes filled with tears, "Guys...what Gremlin said..."

Charles kissed his cheek, "Don't, Hen. She was just trying to get under your skin."

"But it's kinda true, isn't it?" Henry wiped his milky nose on his sleeve, "I was supposed to stop her, but I'm the only one who did nothing. I couldn't move. I was so scared."

"Henry, it's okay." Charles hugged him, "I promise. What little you did do was more than enough."

Henry didn't return the hug, "But it's true. Charles, I remembered everything. I never fought back. Not as a kid, and not now."

"That's not true." Sam said from behind him, "Give yourself more credit than that."

Henry turned to face them, "What?"

Sam smiled, "I saw the whole thing. I couldn't even _begin_ to guess what was going on in that room, but you recognized that it was magic. You knew to erase the edge of the rune circle to break the spell. If you hadn't done that, we wouldn't have been able to stop her, and she would have gotten away again. We know her secret, now. Why did you have a spoon in your pocket, anyway?"

Henry thought back to what happened. Charles had dropped his flare, so the opening door was visible to him across the floor. She was going to seal the room shut and then make her escape after freeing the victim, perpetuating the cycle she had carefully crafted for over twenty years.

"A spoon?" Charles shook his head, "Hold on, what _did_ happen? Everything until you got pepper sprayed is a huge blur for me."

"Trust me when I say that Henry has done weirder things to escape a situation." Ellie replied, "Anyway, we've got Gremlin under lock and key, so we'd better get this news back to the general."

***


	3. Chapter 3

As Henry walked with the group, his mind began to wander. He remembered things from so long ago. Memories he didn't know he had. He remembered being a shy kid, paranoid about his inability to talk and feeling worthless for not being able to get his words out. He remembered a time when he just accepted that he would marry a woman and have kids with her someday, because that's what his weird cult believed in, not even questioning that some people can't be in a healthy relationship with the opposite gender, and that some people should never be parents. He remembered a time when his only solace was in the cartoons that would play on the beat-up old tv screen, some of which helped to open his eyes to what the outside world was like. He watched many of them in secret, but he didn't know why he was ashamed.

He remembered when he was slightly older, he confided in a friend that he was conflicted. In his area, people mostly thought that you can only be attracted to one gender, but Henry couldn't figure out why he couldn't choose. The friend, who turned out to be pan, introduced him to the term "bisexual". It stuck, and ever since, Henry was proud to wear that label. His parents, of course, never understood. They thought he was just skirting around the issue of marriage and kids.

He had context now for so many things he considered a part of himself. Why he couldn't remember getting certain scars. Why learning of his bisexuality was such a revelation. Why he completely closed off, never telling anyone when he needed help for fear of backlash or punishment. Why he was so used to people not believing him when he told the truth.

"Henry?"

Charles broke his train of thought. He hadn't realized he'd been crying.

Charles squeezed his hand, "We're here."

Henry glanced over at Sam. If they saw the whole thing, then they probably saw him freeze up, too. They probably saw the haunted look in his eyes as he recalled his deepest and most scarring childhood memories. His deepest insecurities. The events that scared him so badly that he lost all respect for people, and even though he didn't consciously remember until now, it was still affecting him, even today.

"Henry." Galeforce stood outside the interrogation room gazing through the one-way glass at the figures behind it, "You don't have to do this."

"I know, but I want to." Henry looked at Gremlin on the metal chair, who was restrained with no less than three whole rolls of duct tape, with six soldiers pointing sniper rifles point-blank directly at her head.

After a moment of staring, Henry turned to the general, "Sir, I remembered everything. I know what Gremlin does to her victims."

"You do!?" Galeforce seemed a bit too eager to know, but he caught himself and backed off, "Can you tell me? I understand if you..."

"No no, I think I _need_ to talk about it." Henry explained, "I saw it when Gremlin did it to... _to Charles..."_

Charles looked away, "Yeah, uh, that part of my memory is still fuzzy."

"You'll remember. I'm sure you will." Henry took a huge, deep breath, "Gremlin has nerve powers, and she uses them to activate all pain signals at the same time. Every single one."

Everyone shared a horrified glance with each other as they considered the implications of this.

 _"Oh yeah..."_ Charles' voice wobbled as big, fat tears poured down his face, _"I remember...oh my god, it was...I can't even describe it...I think I'm gonna throw up..."_

"Hey, you should sit down." Henry pulled up a chair for him, "Hush. It's okay. It's over now."

Charles held onto him as he cried, his grip weak and shaky.

 _"Oh my fucking god, Hen..."_ Charles murmured into his hoodie, _"You went through this as a fucking child."_

Henry could feel the sympathetic stares on his back. His eyes filled with tears again. He couldn't help it. He was weak for Charles crying, and those old memories were no longer so fuzzy.

It was cathartic though, in a way; Letting all these tears out. He'd never properly processed that event because he'd tried so hard to block it out. He hadn't even known what was happening to him. He didn't even have a concept of death at the time, so how could he comprehend such immense suffering? Pain worse than breaking every bone in your body. Pain worse than being burned at the stake. Pain worse even than the most venomous creatures on earth, including the so-called "suicide plant", which caused such horrible pain that it made people kill themselves just to end it.

No. This pain was like all of those things at the same time, stretched out over several minutes or more, with no hope of escape. Even the strongest and toughest victims refused to talk about Gremlin's treatment of them because it was so mind-bendingly awful.

And Henry was a _child_ when it happened.

It was no longer Henry comforting Charles. Now Charles was comforting Henry. Henry fell to his knees on the floor, his arms around Charles' waist with his face pressed into the front of his shirt. He sobbed until he had nothing left in him. He squeezed Charles hard enough that surely it hurt, but he couldn't stop. He screamed until his throat hurt, wishing with all his heart that he could go back and change everything. Desolate that nobody had believed him when he asked for help. He had to carry this his whole life. He would have to live it down. He couldn't separate it from himself. It would stay with him until the day he died.

He was pretty sure he blacked out at some point during all that, but finally, he lifted his head, his eyes soggy as they struggled to stay open. He sat back on his knees, resting his head in Charles' lap, focusing on the air that came into his lungs. He felt so much better now that the pressure had been released.

Charles pat Henry's head, and he closed his eyes as he leaned into the affection.

"D'you feel better, Hen?"

Henry nodded.

"Good."

After another moment of resting, Henry stood up, wiping his eyes until he could see again.

"Henry..." Charles stood with him, "I'm so sorry. I wish I could take this pain away from you. God, what was I even doing at that age? Crying because my loose tooth hurt? Getting gum stuck in my hair?"

Henry smiled. It felt nice to smile after all that, "You had hair as a kid?"

"Yeah. I had a lot of hair as a kid. I miss it sometimes, too."

Henry looked into the interrogation room again. He was scared of facing her, but he didn't want to run away.

Galeforce likewise watched Gremlin like a hawk, "Did she pepper spray you, son?"

Henry nodded, "How did you know that? We just got back."

"Your face is all red around the eyes." he explained, "I assume Charlie told you what to do?"

"Yeah." Henry pat his face down to clear it of any lingering milk, "It actually snapped him out of the agony he'd just been through. I have the mom override too, so I get it. Heheh."

Galeforce raised an eyebrow in amusement, "The mom override?"

"Yeah." Henry's voice was a little scratchy now from the tears he was wiping away, "I have pretty severe anxiety. It's where my selective mutism comes from, but if someone else needs help, it's like the anxiety is overpowered by that."

Sam swiped their keycard on the interrogation room, and Gremlin began to struggle in the chair.

Galeforce turned on the intercom, "Stay still if you don't want to be shot."

Gremlin stopped struggling, but she still eyed the door warily.

Sam clicked the door open, a baton in their other hand, "You ready?"

Henry steeled himself, "Let's...just...get this over with."

Sam swung the door fully open, and Henry, Charles, and Ellie all entered. Rupert moved to the side to allow them access, but he kept his sniper on standby.

Gremlin grinned, "Hi, Henry. Nice to see you again."

Henry shut his eyes on instinct, but that damn smile was still stuck to the back of his eyelids.

Charles took his hand, "It's okay, Hen. She's trying to rile you. Don't let her."

Charles' voice brought his panic back down, so he opened his eyes to meet her gaze dead-on, "Why do you do this? What do you gain from making people suffer?"

"Aw, you're cute, _Hen,_ but I don't have to say anything."

 _"Don't_ call me that!" Henry snapped, "Only Charles is allowed to call me Hen."

"Don't be silly. You talk big, but the truth is, you're still scared of me, _Hen."_

Henry's chest rattled with more sobs that he desperately tried to hold back. One thing that helped him out though? Hearing his greatest childhood tormenter use his love's nickname for him was making him _angry._

"That may be true, but I'm not a child anymore." Henry crossed his arms, "You're wrong about one thing, though. I'm not a rose with no thorns. I'm being gracious by holding back. Do you really want to see the thorns I surrounded myself with to protect me?"

Gremlin lost her smile. She looked...impressed? Shocked? Henry wasn't sure, and before he could identify what she might be thinking, the easy smile was back.

"Let me make one thing clear to you." Henry continued, "Just because I'm afraid doesn't mean I can't fight. I should kill you for laying one finger on Charles. I think you'll find it interesting that when people care about you, you'd give your life for them, and I'd gladly give an organ to anyone on base if they needed one."

Henry braced one foot against the chair, his fingers wrapping around Gremlin's throat, firm enough to act as a warning, but not so firm as to choke her.

"As it turns out, when you torture children, they grow up into vengeful adults. I'm sure you'd be able to handle even half of what you put your victims through..." Henry's voice was now cold and unfeeling, whispery, his eyes half closed in a soft glare, _"...right...?"_

Gremlin squirmed against his hold, but Henry had another trick up his sleeve; He could cast spells too. Usually only basic ones, but in certain circumstances, he could allow himself to dip into stronger magic, and it seemed he was on luck's good side today. He cast a very simple leeching spell through his fingers, slowly draining her life force and adding it to his own like an energy vampire.

Her eyes met his again, and for the first time ever, her face reflected... _fear._

Gremlin was _afraid_ of him.

Henry smiled, "Not so tough now, huh?"

"Stop." she croaked, "You wouldn't. You're too nice."

"No, Gremlin. I _was_ too nice, but you changed me." Henry laughed cruelly, "What's wrong? Can't handle a bit of karma?"

"Let me go." Gremlin thrashed, but Henry tightened his fingers around her throat, "Stop! You already took my magic! What more do you want!?"

"I want you to talk."

"Just let me go! Don't do this! _Please!"_

"Aw, you're so cute when you're begging for your life!"

Henry sapped her energy faster and faster, making her slump in exhaustion and revelling in her fear. He wasn't even really hurting her. Could she really not handle anything she did to others?

Finally she cried out, "FINE!"

Henry let go, her stamina snapping back into place as she trembled.

"Fine, I'll talk, I'll tell you everything, just stop doing that."

"Wow. You really are pathetic." Henry backed off, "Maybe I should get _you_ pepper sprayed. Good luck getting anyone to lead you to the eye hose."

Galeforce spoke through the microphone outside, _"Tell us why you torture people."_

Gremlin slowly shook her head, but then flinched back when Henry took a step towards her, "Ah! I do it to maximize my power!"

Henry stood back and crossed his arms, "Elaborate."

"You can't get better if you don't practice, right? If I can figure out how to harness all my energy, I'll reach my full potential!"

"Couldn't you just do that by removing pain instead of causing it?" Ellie said, "Wouldn't that make more sense?"

Gremlin didn't respond.

"Yeah. Come to think of it, taking pain away from someone who's in agony would be a lot harder than putting someone through agony." Charles added, "Is there another reason?"

"No."

Henry knew it was a lie, so he moved quickly towards her to startle her.

"AGH! FINE FINE!" Gremlin tried to scramble away from Henry, though she was still bound, "It's also to make myself feel safer! When I have complete control over someone, it's like nothing can hurt me!"

Henry dug his fists into his eyes, forgetting the warning about touching his face.

Did she have some kind of tragic backstory too? Was all of this just a side effect of trauma? Like it was for him?

He let himself become a bad person to protect himself from further pain. He knew that much about himself.

_Am I...no different to her?_

Henry ran from the interrogation room, ignoring the shouts from everyone behind him. He had every answer he ever wanted from his former tormenter, and he couldn't stomach another second in front of everyone who kept trying to help him.

_You don't deserve their kindness._

_What if you hurt people just as badly as you were hurt?_

_Someone turned her into a monster, and you continued the cycle._

_The victim becomes the abuser._

Before he knew it, he was back in the apartment on base he shared with Charles, locking the door and running to the bathroom to throw up into the toilet. He hurt so many people in his life, people whose lives were ruined because of him. People who lost their homes, their jobs, their families...all because he betrayed them for his own selfish thirst for wealth.

_You're just a rose with no thorns._

He didn't like being called harmless, but he didn't want to be a monster.

_The thorns aren't on the outside anymore._

He didn't want to be...

_You turned them inward._

He didn't want this pain...

_You hurt the people you wanted to protect._

Stop doing this!

_You covered yourself in the thorns so no one would touch you._

_You._

_Have._

_No._

_Thorns._

_Left._

***

"Henry?" Charles fiddled with the doorknob, "Please let me in. I'm really worried about you."

Sam and Ellie were with him. Charles had unlocked the digital lock with his keycard, but Henry had also twisted the deadbolt into place, so nobody could get in without the physical key, which Charles had accidentally left inside the apartment.

"If you like, I can pick the lock." Ellie offered.

Charles slowly nodded, "Yeah. He's not answering, and I'm scared."

Ellie slid a bobby pin out from inside her hair, twisting it into a hook shape and inserting it into the lock. After a few attempts, the lock clicked, and the door swung open.

"Henry?"

Charles saw that the bathroom light was on, and the bedroom door was wide open. He headed into the room to see a figure huddled up on the bed, hugging the bunched-up blanket tight in his arms.

Charles shook his shoulder, "Hen? You okay?"

Henry rolled further away from him. It looked like he'd been crying.

Seeing him grab the blanket like that gave him an idea. He headed to the closet to rifle through his belongings, emerging with a big plush teddy bear wearing a red silk bow tie. Charles hugged it tight to his chest before heading back to the bed to sit on the edge of the mattress.

"Henry. You wanna meet a new friend?"

The odd question and Charles' excited tone of voice made Henry look up, and he eyed the teddy bear curiously.

Charles held it out to him, "This is Captain Cozy! No judgement, I was ten when I named him."

Henry slowly sat up, blinking blearily as he took the plushie and hugged it close.

Charles cradled his cheek, and Henry pushed his hand away.

"Henry?" Charles pat Captain Cozy's head, "Did I do something wrong?"

_"No!"_

The answer was immediate. Fresh tears welled in Henry's eyes. He held the bear in an ironclad grip.

"No." he repeated, "You did nothing wrong. That's why this hurts so much. You never do anything wrong..."

Henry hid his face against Captain Cozy's head.

_"...but I do..."_

Charles sighed, "This again? Henry, you're not a bad person."

 _"Yes I am!"_ Henry threw the plush against the wall, just missing Sam's arm with it. Both hands flew up to cover his mouth, "God, fuck, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Henry." Charles picked up the bear again to hand it back, "Captain Cozy's used to it. He gets thrown around all the time because he's immune."

Henry took the bear back to cry into it, shaking and shivering and trembling.

"Henry. Please." Charles swiped a hand across Henry's sweaty forehead, "Just talk to me. I love you."

 _"I'm not a good person, Charles."_ Henry's voice was muffled by the stuffed plushie, _"There are still so many things you don't know about me. There are so many things I've done that I regret. Gremlin's been traumatized too. She let it turn her into a monster, and now I've let her turn me into one, too."_

"What? Henry, that's ridiculous." Ellie blurted out before Charles could stop her, "Gremlin abuses children! How can you even compare yourself to her!? You're like the coolest guy I know, and I have a lot of guy friends."

"You don't know me very well, Ellie. You really don't."

"I know you well enough."

"Did you see the way I wrung her out!?" Henry leapt to his feet, Captain Cozy under one arm, "I _scared_ her! And I _enjoyed_ it! I finally felt _powerful_ for once, but that's so wrong! _I feel rotten."_

"Hush." Charles touched Henry's mouth with one hand, "Hush, Henry. Listen."

Henry placed a kiss to the outstretched hand, "What?"

Charles cradled Henry's head in his hands, and this time, he didn't fight it.

"Look." Charles shot him a goofy grin, like he was sharing a secret, "What are you doing right now?"

Henry reached up to touch one of his hands on his face, "I'm..."

"You're accepting me." Charles took Captain Cozy to hold up in front of him, waving his little stubby arms in the air, "You trust my judgement, yeah? You love me. You apologized for throwing my favorite childhood toy, and you feel bad that you've kept so much from me, but what did I tell you, Henry?"

Henry sighed, "Charles-!"

"What did I tell you?"

Henry thought back, "Um...you said...what matters is who I am _now?"_

"Yes."

"But you don't _know_ who I am. I haven't shown all of me _to_ you." Henry rubbed his eyes, _"Fuck, this hurts..."_

Charles knew he was talking in circles. Henry wasn't listening to him. He knew he was right, so how could he get Henry to listen?

He shared a glance with Ellie and Sam, still stuck on standby.

Charles dropped the stuffed bear to the floor. He had an idea, but he needed to brace himself for it.

"You're right."

Henry's gaze lingered on him as he steeled his expression, now devoid of love and concern.

"What?"

Charles did his best to hold onto that cold indifference, "I said you're right. You're a bad person, and I don't love you."

Henry just kept staring at him.

"I don't need you here. I want you to leave." Charles gestured towards the door, "Get out. I never want to see you again."

He held eye contact for so long, he began to feel heavy, like he was about to lose his balance and tumble to the floor. Henry was crushed. His mouth drawn into a wince, his heart shrinking into a raisin. He finally broke eye contact, and he hesitated as he looked between the door and Charles' hardened glare.

He dejectedly rubbed his arm, shuffling towards the door like his legs were made of lead.

Charles caught his arm as he passed by, _"I wasn't serious."_

Henry froze.

Charles gave him a side-eyed glance, "I love you, Henry. I mean that with all my heart. I may not know everything about you, but I know _you._ I've seen parts of you that you would never show to anyone else. What did you feel just now when I told you to get out?"

Henry refused to look at him.

"You said earlier that you would gladly give an organ to anyone on base, and you're still calling yourself a monster?" Charles turned Henry to face himself, "What will it take, Henry? What will it take to get you to believe me when I say that I love you?"

Henry covered his face with both hands, his sleeves pulled up over his wrists.

"You love me, Henry." Charles wrapped his arms around him, "Do you need to know everything about me to love the person I am now? No, of course not. You love me because I'm me. You're not gonna withhold your feelings because you don't know all the awful things I've done in the line of fire. The ways I've gotten criminals to talk. The people I've shot to protect myself. It's all stuff I'm not proud of."

Henry shook with silent sobs.

"I'm so sorry for scaring you. I do love you, Henry. I want you to stay. Please believe that, at least. Don't feel bad for scaring Gremlin. She tortured you, and she tortured me too. You didn't go too far. I know that for a fact. Don't beat yourself up over this."

Henry fiercely returned his hug, _"I'm so fucking lucky I have you. I still can't believe how lucky I am. I forgive you for the scare. I love you. Don't leave me."_

_"I'm not going anywhere, Hen. Hush. You're safe now."_

_"I love you."_

_"I love you too."_

Ellie and Sam smiled at each other as they slowly crept down the hall towards the door, closing it behind them and making polite conversation, their voices fading into the background until the two men became aware that they were alone.

Henry kissed Charles' cheek, "Thank you, Charles. Don't do that again, though. You really scared me."

"I'm so sorry." Charles pulled away to pick up Captain Cozy from the floor, "Hey, if you ever want a turn with Captain Cozy, he's great at hugs."

Henry took the bear from him, "You know, somehow, I thought you'd be the type of person to take a teddy bear with you to a military base."

"Hey, he reminds me of home, okay? I get homesick sometimes."

Henry thought that was an odd term. "Homesick." He didn't get it, but at the same time, maybe he was just homesick all the time and didn't recognize it.

Well, that didn't matter much, did it? Because Henry was with Charles, and Charles always made everything better.

Henry closed his eyes when Charles took his face in his hands, and he couldn't help but feel that the gentle kiss pressed to his lips was the sweetest he'd ever had.

***

**Author's Note:**

> If you're wondering if the pepper spray scene was inspired by a certain pair of unuses and annuses...
> 
> Maybe........?
> 
> Come say hi to me on tumblr! marshemillow.tumblr.com


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